Some Kind of Haven
by Age of E.R.A
Summary: A girl joins a mutant underground group and ends up where she most definitely doesn't want to be. I worked really hard on this. R&R please. 2/8.
1. Introductions and Summaries

I've spent a lot of time on this. I wrote it by hand in summer, 2000. Then I started typing it up in 2001. Then I edited out all the crappy bits. Re-edited it once I was all finished and ran it through a spell- and grammar-check in Microsoft Word.  
  
It was originally titled "Mad Season" after the Matchbox Twenty song, but I renamed it because music didn't really play a large role when I re-edited it.  
  
And now you see before you the finished work. It is 8 chapters long and is the first arc of the ERA series. The arc is a short series called the Adrenaline Chronicles. The title of the arc is "Some Kind of Haven".  
  
This story is about a fourteen year-old girl named Andrea Shane. She mutated when she was in the seventh grade and became an immediate outcast. She doesn't want to fit in, she doesn't want to be an outcast, she doesn't want to live, and she doesn't want to die. She doesn't know what she wants.  
  
But one day, a woman comes to her offering her friendship, a place to stay, tutoring, training in her powers, and people who will love and understand her. The catch? She has to move to New York City and cut off all contact with her family, whom the woman has psychically altered to let their youngest daughter leave home with financing for the new program.  
  
Andrea Shane makes a series of choices, some good and some not so good, and continues to end up where she least expects it with the people she least expects to meet.  
  
It's a coming of age story with a twist.  
  
Have fun reading it. You'll never know the fun I had writing it, or the fun I will have writing the rest of the ERA stories.  
  
And now, without further ado, brought to you by Labyrinth Comics,  
  
**_ Some Kind of Haven_**  
Story by Kim Raleigh  
Art by Kim Raleigh  
Written by Kim Raleigh  
  
  
  
Author's Note: Confused? Then read the bios of the characters mentioned in this story. They are under "The E.R.A. Files".  



	2. Into the Shadows

_June 15th  
  
Dear Diary,  
  
I'm leaving tomorrow, someplace in New York City. I'd say I was afraid to leave home, but I'm not. I'd say I'd miss my family, but I'm the odd one out, the black sheep, the only … you know, special one. I'd say I'd miss my teachers, but, as I've told you before, Diary, I'm not one for authority. I just don't like people telling me what to think. I'm already being pushed down pretty hard as it is. I'd say I'd miss my friends, but … Well, that's enough of that, Diary.  
  
I'm too self-pitying, aren't I, Diary? The way I see it, if I don't pity myself and feel sorry for myself no one else will, you know? But it kinda slows me down sometimes. Maybe I should just stop pitying myself and actually go out and try and fix my problem or fix whoever has the problem with me. I might actually get something done.  
  
Today was my last day of school. Good. That's the end of freshman year. It sucked. Being a freshman is bad enough as it is. The juniors and seniors go off by themselves, but the sophomores are the ones you have to look out for. We're not that far in age, but they still have authority. They think they're so much better than the freshmen. They think they're so much better than me. And you know how I feel about that. But they leave me well enough alone. Gee. I wonder why? Could it be … I dunno … the fact that they think I might go nuclear on them and explode, the way "those muties do"? Because I'd slash their throats as soon as look at them, the way "those muties do"? It's bad enough being a freshman, but a mutant? Someone must really have it in for me up there. I always thought God had a wicked sense of humor. Go God go. You know … If He even exists. But I don't think I could handle it if He doesn't. I already want to die now. If there's no God, I don't want to die, either. No death, no life … Royally screwed up the ass with a board and a nail. *Sigh.* Life hates me.  
  
The things they say about me … they're true. I _would _cut them up if they ever gave me a chance. And I have. But they deserved it. No one calls me a freak and lives to tell about it. Figuratively, I mean. I haven't killed anyone as of yet. And I hope I never do. But you know what they say - You never know what the future holds. But man! What I've wanted to do to some of the people at my school if I ever met them in a dark alley.  
  
It's like I told that student counselor when he asked me why I act that way around people. After a silence of, literally, about three minutes, I figured he'd think I was nuts if I started laughing. It was such a long silence and so awkward it was funny. If you step out of a situation for a bit, you might actually enjoy it. I said, "I love thrills. I love adrenaline rushes. I love giving people adrenaline rushes. Scare 'em straight, I guess. I gotta look out for myself, because - let's face it - you teachers and the administration aren't doing a thing to help me."  
  
We then discussed how I was afraid of rejection and that if I opened up to people I might just see how much people like me. It was a life-altering experience. It changed my entire point of view. After that, I suddenly started making friends. One at first, then more and more. Then I joined the cheerleading team and shook pom-poms and screamed like a banshee as the basketball players made baskets.  
  
Uh-huh. Right. OR I just left the room realizing I'd missed a good, solid hour's worth of popcorn and "Transformers".  
  
Can't wait for tomorrow when I'm outta here. The future's gotta be so much more better than the present.  
  
But … the future is the future and I can't predict it. Wouldn't that be a cool mutant power? It would make life so much more easier. I bet a mutant has that power. A mutant for every occasion. They must be coasting through life. I bet they're Bill Gates. Maybe someone like Batman or Ross Perot with a frikkin' lot of cash piled up somewhere. But now, I have to make all my mistakes all by my lonesome. I _don't _know the future, I don't know what's coming. All I can do is keep standing, keep fighting, and keep hoping for the best.  
  
Wow. That was pretty deep. Don't count on another one of those happening again. Not in this lifetime, anyway.  
  
-Love Then, Now and Forever,  
Andrea Shane  
_  
***  
  
Sprawled out in her seat, the girl attempted to relax after hours of restless jetlag. She was wide awake, but her eyes rested beneath her heavy lids. She bowed her head until it rested on the icy sill of the window. Slowly, she felt herself nodding off to sleep.  
  
"Please return your seat to it's upright locked position … " a voice blared over the intercom. It seemed a shout to her, stabbing her pointed, tufted ears like a knife.  
  
Keeping her eyes closed, she turned her head. "Dammit," she whispered. She then opened them, revealing soft brown flecked gold eyes beneath arched eyebrows on mocha colored skin. She sighed and raised her seat, folded up the small table in front of her, shoved the last airline pretzel in her mouth, and lay back in hear seat once more. She stretched her arms out in front of her, letting her catch a glimpse of the razor sharp claws that grew instead of fingernails and the hands covered by a very thin layer of blonde fur, almost transparent.  
  
She crossed her arms with the two vertical stripes on each, each starting at the bottom part of the shoulder and ending near her wrist. She ran her razor-sharp clawed hands through her tiger- and leopard-print fur. It grew in a jagged pixie-cut and gave her an animalistic quality, as did the light brown tail with it's black tip that was curled tightly and pressed to her back to prevent humans from seeing it. She looked over at her new "teacher" then turned back over and shut her eyes.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, the plane landed and the girl hoisted a simple red duffel bag to her small shoulders. It was nothing fancy. The straps were black and were adjustable and the brand name was scrawled in the center in black stitching. It was very generic and held only her "necessities": a camera, clothing, toiletries, a portable CD player, a few of her favorite CD's, money, and her mother's credit card for emergencies, though she doubted it was necessary, but it would come in practical use for buying expensive souvenirs.  
  
For the first time on the trip from California to New York, other than the "Excuse me" or "Move it" she said every once in a while to get by, she spoke to her companion.  
  
The woman was tall and towered over the girl. She was a little over 6 feet tall had her hair pulled back with a clip and looked very professional. She wore a knee-length gray skirt accompanied by a matching jacket and white blouse. Her shoulders were square and she could have been a military officer. Despite her thin build, the girl was sure that she would be able to strike fear into anyone's heart. When the older woman said something, she was very soft-spoken, but everyone would stop what they were doing and strain to listen. Her eyes were a cold brown. She looked so predictable and her student hated that about her.  
  
"So how are we gonna get there?" the younger one asked.  
  
"Get where? The base?"  
  
"Where else?"  
  
"A student of mine, Madison Hartz, will pick us up. She will also be showing you around a little, though I suspect Claire and her brother, Patrick, will be doing most of that. They were my first students, you know," Crimson spoke without looking at Andrea, as if not exactly talking to Andrea, but nor was she talking to herself. "And until told otherwise, you will refer to me as Crimson."  
  
Andrea's grin shortened to a smirk. "Aw, but Kinky's so much _nicer_ ," Andrea said sarcastically, stating her nickname for Crimson's name: Charlotte Kincaid.  
  
Charlotte narrowed her eyes to deadly slits, turning to her new seemingly reluctant but not ungrateful student. "Now is not the time, Andrea. I can be nice, but I am in a very disagreeable mood at the moment, so I'm warning you to stay out of my way." She spun around and continued to unload her bags from the overhead compartment. "This flight has left me incredibly irritable and, well, 'punchy'. Remember: we were on the same flight and I took the aisle and gave you the window. A flight attendant nearly took off my elbow as she passed by. Yes, yes, I know you think that's funny, well, it's not. Andrea, you have real, valuable talent and I'd hate to tell my students that we can't use it because I pushed you in front of a speeding delivery van!"  
  
The two stepped out of the aircraft, Ms. Kincaid stepping highly and Andrea trudging behind her. She could feel stares boring through her back and she turned her head. People were staring. Turning around, she followed Ms. Kincaid out the door. Before she knew it, they were in the lobby and searching for the girl that would lead them to their final destination.  
  
"Andrea, come this way. I see her." Andrea felt her left arm being pulled towards the doors of the airport, toward a twenty year-old woman in a neon orange turtle-neck sweater and blue jeans, despite the warm weather, and short red hair with sparse bangs. She had some small freckles on her nose and bore a huge smile, but it began to waver as she noticed Andrea's slight scowl. She still held out her hand to the girl.  
  
"Hey! I'm Madison."  
  
Andrea reluctantly shook her hand. "Andrea."  
  
"Let's go get in the car. I'll tell you all about everyone on the ride over there, 'k?" she said, a bit condescendingly.  
  
In the midst of scurrying feet, black suitcases, and a red duffel bag, the three of them ended up standing outside of a dark navy-blue van with round, tinted windows. Madison's eyes darted to the door and the car door unlocked and opened on it's own. She looked at Andrea and smiled again.  
  
"Uh, thanks." Andrea stepped inside and collapsed in the seat farthest from the entrance, not quite sure what to make of her new "teammate". Ms. Kincaid stooped to hit her head on the car doorframe and sat down. Madison got in on the driver's side and buckled herself in. Not waiting for Madison to close them, Ms. Kincaid slammed the door.  
  
"Okay! There are five others there! You are the sixth, and Crimson" - she gestured to Charlotte Kincaid - "runs the place. And yours truly is second-in-command."  
  
Andrea stared out the van's windows at the passing scenery of New York City, still unsure what she was fighting for or against.  
  
And hour later, Andrea Shane, Madison Hartz, and Charlotte Kincaid pulled up to the so-called "Base", headquarters for the underground mutant organization known only to its members as E.R.A.  
  
* * *  
  
"The Base", as it was so called, was no more than an apartment building. Crimson, Audacity, and Andrea were no more than tenants. Three apartments had been leased and were home to the others of the program.  
  
The apartments were in very poor shape with bleak brown and beige walls with several large cracks in them. Each apartment had two bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a small living room. Although the apartments were adequate in size, their interior was horrible: not much light entered the rooms and there was little electricity when they did pay their bills.  
  
The boys slept in the apartment down the hall on the right and the girls slept in the apartment to the left of their "leaders". There were no beds in the apartment, however a futon was one of the very lonely decorations in each of the living rooms, along with a mattress behind it and a few rumpled blankets. Three people were able to sleep comfortably on each. There was also a La-Z Boy chair in each living room near the door. There was a table in the kitchen surrounded by three chairs. A fourth one had to be added to the girl's apartment for Andrea. In spite of the meager furnishings of their homes, the kitchen was always stocked and restocked with healthy food to keep the teenagers in shape. Most of the money was spent on food.  
  
One block away from the apartment building was a park in which they would exercise each day. The park had originally been for small children but had been deserted for nearly twenty years and counting. It was always deserted and carried with it a false sense of security and danger at the same time, almost the same as a child finding a fort between to trees that has been forgotten by its makers: sad and lonely yet innocent and enjoyable. Because of the uninviting atmosphere of the playground when parents forbid their children to play there, the children obeyed. No one was ever found to be loitering on the grounds.  
  
Once Andrea arrived at Base, she was greeting by a boy about her age who was accompanied by a girl. Both were tall and muscular. The girl had straight blonde hair and large blue eyes that would flash at every movement Andrea made and whose lips were slightly turned down. She had a straight, profound nose and was seemingly contrary to her companion.  
  
The boy next to her had dark, black, hair that he had brushed away from his face. His blue eyes weren't as large and seemed calmer than his friend's. His lips were thin but seemed as if they could easily curl up into a smile. His nose was narrow and although he looked very different from the girl, their face shape was similar: both had high cheekbones and oval shaped faces with the same pointed chins and bright blue eyes. At second sight, Andrea was sure that they were cousins if not siblings.  
  
"'Drea, meet Malady" - Audacity gestured to the boy - "and Naiad." - she waved a hand towards the girl. "Malady, Naiad, this is Andrea."  
  
"Hey, Andrea," Malady greeted her, remaining on the steps.  
  
"'Sup."  
  
"Nice to meet you."  
  
"Uhhh, why does everyone have a little nickname?" Andrea asked suspiciously.  
  
Naiad began to speak. Her voice was sharp and soft-spoken, like Crimson, but not as reassuring. "_No_, this is not some little camp, _Andrea_ . If you want the cops to find out your name, then by all means, use yours, but if not, pick one."  
  
Andrea sneered and Malady snickered at the newcomer, then caught himself and said, "Ah, come on, Nai, you're scarin' the rookie." He turned to Andrea. "Sorry. My dear sweet sister here is a witch with a capital 'B'."  
  
"Can it, virus."  
  
Andrea heard a muttering behind her and flexed her ears so she could make out the words.  
  
"Wow, I hope the rest of the introductions go this well."  
  
"Calm down, Crims. It won't be that bad. Promise."  
  
Andrea whirled around and glared at this remark. Already they hated her. 'No shocker there.' she thought bitterly. 'Not many people like me.' She narrowed her eyes and tried to look fierce but her small body would not allow her to hope for too much. Looking up at her new mentor she replied in a sort of hiss, "May I see my room now?"  
  
Crimson looked at Naiad who was staring at the new-comer. "Would you do the honors?" she smiled coldly.  
  
Naiad sighed. Turning to Andrea, she said, "Over here," and disappeared into the foreboding building. Andrea bent down and lifted her duffel bag and followed Naiad up the stairs to her new residence.  
  
The stairs were dark and if Andrea stepped on one too hard or just the right way, she could make them creak softly and talk to her. Naiad, however, seemed to skim up the stairs.  
  
"It's up here," the girl said darkly. Andrea was sure she was being a bother by making her go through the effort of simply showing her the room. Naiad opened the door to display the girl's apartment. Inside a brown haired girl with dark eyebrows resting above round, brown eyes sat cross-legged in a pool of sunshine and flipping through a magazine, stopping to look at an advertisement for self-tanning cream. And no wonder: the girl was surprisingly pale. She was frowning and mouthing the words to the advertisement as she read along and her nostrils sucked in as she read. Her nose was up-turned a bit, but just enough to make her look young. She had a slightly round face and high cheekbones, but they didn't jut out like a model's would. She turned to look up at the two of them and stood up but remained in her pool of sunshine. She sported the classic blue jeans with a white tee shirt look.  
  
"Hi. I'm Ultra," she said in a low, tom-boyish voice.  
  
"Ultra?" Andrea asked, a bit skeptical.  
  
"You know, like UV Rays? Ultra Violet? That stuff?" She sounded almost offended and definitely indignant, as if people had asked her this oftentimes before.  
  
Meanwhile, Naiad had put her hands on her hips and was frowning at the couch.  
  
They followed her gaze and met with the surprised stare of a teenage boy no more than seventeen years old stretched out on the couch, head and feet propped up at either end of the armrests, also flipping through a magazine. He had wavy reddish brown hair and brown eyes. His complexion was relatively smooth. His mouth was slightly parted as if searching for something to say. The word he found was, "What?"  
  
Naiad replied, "_Girls_' room?" She looked sincerely annoyed at his presence. "That means, you are not allowed, Echo."  
  
"What climbed up _your _- "  
  
"Geez, calm down, Nai! I invited him, and it's not like we were doing anything. God forbid we even spoke to each other in your absence!" she added sarcastically.  
  
"Oh, shut-up, Ultra," Naiad said tiredly. She turned back to Echo. "Look, I'm having a really bad day right now and I have a really bad headache and you have a habit of making headaches worse, so please just leave?"  
  
The red-haired boy turned his attention toward Andrea. "Come join our loving family!" He stretched out his arms and tipped his head back over the armrest and smiled. "Group hug!" Andrea couldn't help but smile.  
  
"Shut-up, Echo," She sighed in annoyance. "Just get out. You know what, fine. I don't really care that much … you irritating little twit."  
  
"Twit?!" Echo laughed. "What are you, seven?! Now let's introduce ourselves to kitty-cat over there."  
  
Ultra burst out giggling.  
  
"See what I have to live with, Andrea?" Naiad asked, looking over toward the fourteen-year old.  
  
"See what I have to live with, Andrea?" It was a perfect imitation. His every sound wave matched hers perfectly.  
  
"Not funny."  
  
"Not funny."  
  
"I don't have to take this." She walked behind the couch and pushed him up.  
  
"What? Can't take a little joke?" he asked, still mimicking her voice and smiling.  
  
"Just leave, please," she ordered.  
  
"Alright! Alright! I'm going!" His voice was back to normal. As he opened the door, he turned back with a wicked smile spread across his face. "Oh. And one more thing -" he opened his mouth wide but no sound came out. However, Naiad clasped her hands to her ears and doubled over in pain and cried out. Echo shut his mouth and smiled.  
  
"I just do this 'cause I love ya so _darn _much!" Echo walked out the door and shut the door behind him.  
  
"I hate that guy," Naiad muttered.  
  
"No you don't. How could you?"  
  
"'Scuse me? Uh, what the hell just happened?"  
  
"Echo's scream. It's one of his powers." There was a silence. "So … " Ultra began. "What do you do?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"What can you do? Echo's got his voice. What about you?"  
  
"I dunno. Super-duper hearing, or whatever you wanna call it."  
  
"We're not stupid. Don't call it that," Naiad frowned.  
  
"Whatever. Animal hindlegs, really, really sharp claws. Tiger and leopard print fur in replace of hair - lucky me - and I'm agile, like a cat. And then there's my tail." Andrea uncoiled it from under her shirt and let it flip around behind her.  
  
There was another pause.  
  
"Well, thank you for asking, Andrea," Ultra said caustically. "I'm not allowed to show you indoors. Audacity's little rule. It'll set off the smoke alarm. I take sunlight and UV Rays and absorb them into my skin. I can shoot it out of my body. Don't tell Audacity, but-" Ultra looked behind her and stepped into the pool of light again and then stepped forward into the shade. "Watch and learn, my little one," she grinned wryly. She clapped her hands together and produced a ball of fire. "Naiad! Open the window! Quick!"  
  
As soon as the window was open, Ultra threw the ball of fire upward. It cracked, sizzled, and went out. No sooner had it done this than Ultra pointed her fingers upward and what looked like bolts of electricity shot out of her fingers. They went into oblivion and disappeared.  
  
"See? If that had hit something, it would be dust." Ultra beamed with pride and looked at her nails. "And ya'd think with a gift like that I'd at least be able to get a good tan. And ya know what the _ironic_ thing is? I _burn_." She turned her head swiftly. "Naiad. You're turn."  
  
Naiad was sitting on the couch with the magazine Echo was looking at propped up against her knees. "What? My turn for what? Oh. Andrea doesn't want to hear about that."  
  
"And why doesn't Andrea want to hear about that?" Andrea asked and tried to mask her amused tone with suspicion.  
  
"Because _I _don't go around bragging with a bunch of little kiddies." She sat up and sighed. "_But_, if you insi-ist." Naiad got up and placed both feet together.  
  
"Andrea, back away," Ultra said.  
  
"What? Why?"  
  
"Just do it."  
  
Andrea backed away from Naiad who was beginning to pulse with a white energy. She lifted her hands until they were above her head, palm to palm. She shut her eyes and the energy's power seemed to increase. When she opened them, her eyes were a milky white and she was grinning malevolently. She rose into the air and brought her hands in front of her and cupped them. A ball of the same white energy formed.  
  
"Get me something," Naiad ordered Ultra. Ultra ran and brought back a ratty-looking pillow. It had brown stains on it and there were many holes where one could see the stuffing showing through. She set the pillow a few feet in front of her and ran backwards to Andrea's side.  
  
' What a drama queen. ' Andrea thought, staring at Naiad.  
  
Naiad, still floating, threw the ball of energy at the pillow. Despite Andrea's predicting it would, the pillow did not catch on fire. Instead, shards of it flew and fluttered in all directions, charred and ripped to shreds.  
  
"No!" Naiad screamed and stared at the floor where the pillow had lain. She lowered herself to the ground and closed her eyes. As she did this, the energy around her stopped pulsing and when she opened her eyes again, they were a bright, clear blue, but filled with fear. "Look at the floor! Crimson's gonna _kill _me!"  
  
They looked at the place where the pillow had once been. The floor had a large black stain on it. Ultra walked over to the couch and took a small pillow off of it. She went back over to the charred stain and placed it over the mark.  
  
"See? All better!"  
  
"Oh, like _that's _gonna help, Ultra!" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, an unsuspecting Crimson opened the door.  
  
"Are you girl's done introducing yourselves?" She eyed the pillow suspiciously. Naiad, what is that pillow doing on the floor?"  
  
"I dunno," she muttered.  
  
"Well, pick it up!"  
  
Andrea ran over the pillow and stood with her back to Crimson, blocking the spot and the pillow. She picked up the pillow and, without moving from her place, she tossed it onto the couch and turned around, remaining on the spot.  
  
"Thank you, Andrea." Crimson turned and left the doorway, closing the door behind her.  
  
Naiad sighed. "Thanks," she sighed. Ultra, however, snickered.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Naiad, you _never _get scared! But the one thing that nearly gives you a heart attack is if Crimson might disapprove of you! You shoulda seen your face!" Ultra smiled.  
  
Naiad stared at Ultra with an icy gaze, but to no avail.  
  
"Andrea," Naiad said, looking up.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You need an alias to keep your identity safe."  
  
"I don't care if anyone knows my name."  
  
"But we do. If they find you, they'll find us."  
  
"Who's 'they'?"  
  
"People," she shrugged. "Cops, other mutants, anyone who would try to stop us." She frowned and muttered, "The X-Men are the real assholes, though." She continued louder. "But we've never run into them yet. Do you have anything in mind? It's gotta have something to do with your personality, your powers, or both."  
  
Andrea paused, running through the list of interesting words, looking for a spark of creativity buried somewhere underneath song lyrics and Jolly Rancher Flavors she had memorized long ago. Then she remembered and a name came to her. "I kinda thought the word 'Adrenaline' was pretty cool."  
  
Naiad shrugged again. "That works. But we'll have to call you that for your entire stay here. Do you understand that? Just so we don't slip up when we're in combat. That's one of the most strictest rules here."  
  
"Okay. Adrenaline it is then." There was a pause. "We have to go to the Park. It's this training place. I think you might like it."  
  
'At least she's finally warming up to me. Heh. "Warmed up" to the floor, too. God, that was bad. No more puns.'  
  
They both looked at Ultra, expecting her to say something. "I'll go get Echo and Malady and then we'll go." She shut the door behind her.  
  
  



	3. In Harm's Way

"The Park", as it was so called, was nothing more than a torn down playground where children were forbidden to play. None of them had to be told twice. Quite a few schoolyard urban legends were originated from the Park and if the warnings of parents couldn't keep them away, then supposed headless ghosts would.  
  
Unlike most playgrounds, the Park wasn't colorful. It was brown. The earth was brown. The trees were brown. The play equipment was rusted brown. It was almost as if the _air itself_ around the area was brown. It was almost suffocating.  
  
"Okay, ERA!" Crimson clapped her hands. Andrea had found out just recently that ERA stood for Equality and Rights for All, supposedly their main mission at the Base. "We'll start out with a fifty sit-ups and … What do you think, Audacity? Fifty? Twenty-five? Yeah, twenty-five push-ups."  
  
Andrea watched as each of them got onto their backs and began. "You gotta be kidding."  
  
"It's … not … that … hard … " Naiad insisted in between sit-ups. "You'll get … used to … it."  
  
"Andrea, why aren't you starting?"  
  
"I'm goin', I'm goin'!" She cleared away a few pebbles and began her exercises. As she reached forty, however, her stomach muscles began to ache and she became short of breath. Soon, her chest was aching and her breath was coming in short puffs. She glanced over at Naiad and Echo. They were still going strong. Ultra was already finished. She cursed herself silently in her mind, knowing that she should have tried harder in P.E. the year before.  
  
'35!'  
  
"'Drenaline? Are you done yet? It's time for push-ups."  
  
Not answering, Andrea flipped over onto her hands and toes.  
  
'7 … ' Already she was beginning to slow down. Profanities slipped out from under her breath and she clamped her jaw shut. At 20, she heard Crimson's voice.  
  
"Okay, now we're going to run laps. Andrea, one lap consists of the gate to all the way to that bush over there." As she said the word "all" she pointed to a a sorry-looking plant about 100 feet away. "You'll run until I tell you to stop. Ready, set, GO!"  
  
"Hey! Did you finish the push-ups?" Ultra asked her as they jogged.  
  
"No. Did you?"  
  
"Nope. Got to 35. She always does that. Takes … a number that's too high … and then tells us to stop … too soon. What'd you get?"  
  
" … 20 … "  
  
"I got to 15 the first time."  
  
"See, the trick is, get behind someone taller than you," Malady was catching up to them and cut in. "If you get behind someone like Echo then no one can see you if you don't do the push-ups."  
  
"Slacker!" Ultra yelled at him.  
  
"Damn right!"  
  
"Bite me." Echo was frowning and looked generally angry.  
  
"He's just mad 'cause I do that every time." Malady was smiling. "Did ya choose an alias yet? We're not allowed to call you by anything else, so once you choose that's it. You have to stick with it the rest of your life."  
  
"Adrenaline," she puffed.  
  
He snickered. "I've heard worse." He jogged ahead of them.  
  
That last two comment disturbed Andrea. ' " … the rest of your life"? How long will I be here? "I've heard worse"? From whom? And where are they now? What is this place?'  
  
On the third lap, they were told to stop. "Okay, everyone. I'm giving Audacity ten dollars. She's going to be back with some water in a few minutes. Until then, you have free time." Andrea heard her whisper to Audacity before she left, reaching into her pocket to pull out a crumpled up fortune from a fortune cookie. "Buy a lottery ticket with the change and pick these numbers on the back."  
  
Adrenaline smiled to herself. Finding comfortable indent in a thick tree she curled her legs under her and rested. Audacity was back too soon, in Andrea's opinion and when she got up, her muscles had become sore.  
  
* * *  
  
And so began her first day of training. The rest of the days were the same. Sore muscles, everyone teasing each other. No one pushing themselves to the limits as they had been told. Every day was the same. There was breakfast, exercising, water, power training, and then dinner. There was no lunch. Money was already tight as it was, even with the rationing of everything else.  
  
On the third day of her career at ERA, Crimson called Andrea over to her. "Adrenaline, are you comfortable with drawing blood?"  
  
"What?! No!"  
  
"Will you let me, then?" Crimson's face was straight. Andrea wondered for a second if it was some sick joke.  
  
Scowling, she stepped back. "No. Why? Why do you have to cut me?!"  
  
"Naiad!" Her attention was drawn away from Adrenaline and toward Naiad who was busy chatting with Malady and Ultra.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Come here. I need to talk to you."  
  
Naiad's eyes grew a fraction and she tried to hide the fear in her eyes. "I'm coming," she said meekly, as she reluctantly trotted to Crimson's side. Once she was there, Crimson turned to her and began talking.  
  
"I thought you were going to tell her."  
  
"About what? Oh! Yeah. I'm sorry. I forgot." She sounded genuinely worried and ashamed. "I won't do it again. I promise."  
  
"It's okay, Naiad. Don't freak out. It's getting close to the execution of the plan and we don't need one of our star members having a nervous break down," Crimson smiled. But it faded as she added, "Try not to forget next time, okay? Now go finish the laps, like I _know _you were doing."  
  
Naiad smiled and turned away from them.  
  
"Wouldja like to tell me what's going on now?"  
  
"As part of the plan, we'll need a blood sample. Malady is making a virus for us. That's his power: he controls all disease and viruses. We'll need to take some of your DNA because it carries the genetic coding for your mutant powers. Hopefully, we'll be able to alter the DNA slightly to mix it with Echo's, Naiad's, Ultra's, Audacity's, mine, and his own. With this new virus, we can create the perfect race: mutants. I'll explain what it does back at the Base."  
  
All this flew past her. She couldn't find the right words to say, but, finally, she found the perfect phrase that suited her feelings: "Huh?"  
  
"You didn't understand a _word _of that?" She sighed. "Maybe this was a mistake."  
  
"No. No! I get the making the virus part, but how do we mix the powers? And alter my DNA? Alter _all _of our DNA? Don't you need cash for that?"  
  
"Malady has an inherent gift for understanding biology and science. Whether that's a mutant trait or not has yet to been determined. And I take what I can from the minds of scientists and doctors on the street and in hospitals and labs. I enter the hospitals and labs by mentally altering the way people see me. It's almost the equivalent of being a shape-shifter, but not quite. I take that information, and store it in my mind, come back to ERA, and transfer that information to Malady and the rest. My students have a state-of-the-art education, rivaled by few. You let us take care of this. After all, we can't let this information slip into the wrong hands, you know."  
  
"Um, have you been - you know - doing that to me?"  
  
"What? Taking information? No. You have nothing we don't already know. Giving information? Yes. You should be able to ace any geometry or algebra quiz should you choose to go home."  
  
"Sweet," Andrea grinned. "So when to you need the blood sample?"  
  
"By Wednesday."  
  
"That's tomorrow!"  
  
"Then you'll have to stop by this afternoon, won't you?" she smiled. "Now get back to work." As Andrea turned to leave, she called her back again. "Oh, and Andrea?"  
  
"Yeah?" She turned around.  
  
"Get Naiad away from Malady. They're distracting each other. And one more thing: this is very important. We've lost people on less dangerous and less important missions. I want you to be careful out there next week. You're still a rookie, got it?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." But the words sent a chill down her spine. 'This place is … Twilight Zone-y. Best I can explain it.'  
  
* * *  
  
"Crims?"  
  
"Come in, honey."  
  
Andrea cringed at her choice of words but entered her apartment anyway.  
  
"We need a sterilized needle to extract the blood." She handed her a needle. "Know what? I don't trust you. I'm afraid you'll screw up. I don't want you hurting yourself. I'll do it."  
  
"Okay." Andrea silently thanked her lucky stars for not having to watch the needle enter her skin and draw out her own blood. She knew from experience that when you do things yourself, they always hurt more. She stared at the walls and traced the cracks with her eyes and then counted them individually.  
  
"All done. See? That wasn't so bad."  
  
"Take out halfa pint, why don'tcha?" Andrea mumbled sarcastically.  
  
"When you leave, tell Malady that I'm ready for him. He'll have to help me with some of the work."  
  
"Will do. See ya." As Andrea left the room and passed the doorway and shut the door she scrunched up her face in pain and grabbed her bicep where she had drawn out the blood. "Ow!" she drawled. "Seriously, though! Why'dja hafta take out so much?!" She placed an index finger and middled finger in front of the hole where the blood was trickling out. She hadn't received a band-aid. 'Too save money, I bet.'  
  
"Hey, Malady! Wait up!" He was just beginning to unlock the front door to his apartment.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Crimson wants to see you."  
  
"Make-up something. Like I'm sick or something."  
  
"Yeah, right."  
  
"Okay, or I got hurt."  
  
"Good idea. I'll tell her that Naiad or Echo beat the crap out of you. See ya. I'll go tell her that." Andrea was turning to leave when she heard him.  
  
"No, wait! I'm going. I'm going. You don't have to resort to those threats." He passed by her, grumbling to himself about his work, then stopped. "And by the way … "  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I can take Echo."  
  
"Suuuure," Adrenaline mumbled as she turned around.  
  
* * *  
  
Andrea was flipping through the cupboards, hoping to find some long forgotten Oreos or Junior Mints or something with chocolate in it. She was having a "chocolate day" as Ultra liked to put it. All she found was a cardboard box of rice and some sugar. Blaming Crimson for the shortage of food, she plucked some rice grains out of the box and walked to the living room. She carefully munched on the hard rice grains and still was when the door swung open, revealing a wide-eyed, frantic Malady.  
  
"Naiad?! Ultra?! Adrenaline?! Are you there?! It's ready! We need you!"  
  
"Whoa there, Mal! Back up! Down, boy!" Adrenaline got up and shit the door. "Now slow down. _What's _going on?"  
  
"The virus is ready." He was still hyperventilating.  
  
"So?"  
  
"This is it! You don't understand. ERA has been waiting for this kind of breakthrough for _years_. When Crimson started it. With this virus, we can bring an end to humanity and create a race that's _all _mutant!"  
  
"Malady … "  
  
"What?" he gasped.  
  
"You're creepy."  
  
"We need this. Now go get the others!" he said, pointing out the door. "_ Go, go, go_!"  
  
"Malady! Get a telepath to find them!"  
  
" … Crimson!" He was off and running toward the apartment. He furiously banged on the door. Within moments, Echo, Naiad, Ultra and Audacity were running up the stairs. They, too, looked as if they had just seen a ghost. Adrenaline didn't think it was possible, but Ultra's face was even more drained of all color, save for her cheeks. They were flushed a bright red. They stormed into the room and Adrenaline followed.  
  
Inside, they all crowded around a table with a microscope and a small, black box. Malady was screaming orders despite the fact that everyone was so tightly compressed together.  
  
"Naiad! You first! Into the box! Now!"  
  
Naiad put her feet and hands together. She shut and opened her eyes, revealing them now to be a milky white substance. She glowed with energy and static filled her hair. She brought her hands in front of her and shot a small stream of white into the box. The box vibrated quickly but Naiad kept shooting the white.  
  
"Echo! Now! Naiad!"  
  
Echo opened his mouth but no sound came out. Naiad's white energy surrounded something that made a ball in front of his face. The white ball of energy bobbed up and down and flew in short circles in front of his face. Ultra didn't need her cue. With feet firmly planted on the ground, she frowned and brought her hand in front of her. She looked somewhat like a traffic guard. She shot solar energy from the palm of her hand and it surrounded the white ball, creating a yellow-orange, hazy, aura around it.  
  
"Audacity, you're turn. Open it up." He was very grim. "It's my turn now," he whispered.  
  
Audacity did as she was told, which surprised Adrenaline. She was second-in-command and was used to giving the orders. But the tone in his voice almost made Adrenaline want to try to telekinetically open it up.  
  
Once the ball was open, Malady cupped his hand a clear, foggy sphere formed in his hand. He carefully blew it into the other ball. It looked as if a vein would pop in his neck and forehead.  
  
Adrenaline looked over at Audacity, her hair, too, was filled with static and her eyes were washed over with a glowing red substance. Her hands were stretched out, palms forward, and light vapor was stretching from her palms to the ball of light.  
  
Without warning, Crimson's forefinger phased away, turning into a red wind - her power of changing into a gaseous state one body-part at a time - and she clenched her teeth in pain. Adrenaline could see blood dripping from the nub, though it was covered in skin, as if it had healed years ago as a child. Andrea couldn't explain it. All of a sudden, Andrea could see tiny dots floating around outside of the ball. Audacity brought her left hand away and a pale red beam enveloped the strange structures and brought them inside of the ball. Then a tiny tube of a thick, red liquid - 'My blood!' - hovered into the air and was poured gently into the ball. The ball began to shake and convulse violently.  
  
"Now!" Audacity obeyed Malady and jammed the ball into the box telekinetically and Malady breathed one last time onto it. Audacity closed and locked the box. Ultra welded it shut with a stream of solar energy and all was silent.  
  
The six students and teacher stared expectantly at the gray glow around the black, sleek, diminutive box and waited. Nothing happened. It shook slightly as if something was trying to get out and then there was a slight buzz, like a machine being shut off, as the gray glow died down, down, down, until it disappeared. The buzzing stopped and the gray glow was gone. No one dared to move. All of a sudden, Malady whispered, "We did it." Naiad let out a loud whoop as Echo fought back fits of laughter of joy. Ultra was smiling and looked very content. Audacity reached over and hugged her, let go, then jumped into the air and floated up to the ceiling telekinetically. She also whooped. Pretty soon everyone was cheering and clapping, all ignoring the tapping on the floor of their neighbors below them.  
  
Andrea stared at their little display of happiness, not knowing what to think, just confused and slightly sickened at this performance. The smiles were contagious and, though she had no idea what was going on, she smiled. She knew it was something big.  
  
Crimson grunted in pain and all eyes turned to her. They had forgotten her presence and were surprised to hear her.  
  
She was clutching her hand in pain and her eyes were tightly clenched shut. Her lips were held tightly together, making her mouth appear smaller than it atomically should be able to get. They all remembered the sacrifice she made for the project and Naiad and Malady were immediately at her side.  
  
'Like dogs.' Andrea thought bitterly. She briefly wondered how they got to be so loyal.  
  
"Crimson! Are you okay?" Malady asked with great sympathy. Echo and Ultra were trying to be discreet as they stared at the nub of finger she had left.  
  
"I'm fine, sweetie," she said, patting his shoulder and forcing a tired smile across her pained lips. "I knew I had to do it. There was no way around it. It's okay. I … just need a bandage of some sort."  
  
"W … will it grow back?" Adrenaline ventured, surprised at how soft her voice had become.  
  
"No more than yours will, Adrenaline. It was a sacrifice I had to make for the good of the world. You'll see," she smiled. "In time. You'll see."  
  
The same feeling of disturbance swept over Andrea and she wondered once more 'What is this place?'  
  
As she turned to leave, Malady caught up with her and walked her back to her apartment.  
  
"Hey," he smiled. "Wanna know how I did that?"  
  
"Not especially," she smiled.  
  
"Too bad. I'm gonna tell you anyway. I have this thing where I can control diseases, kind of. I don' know. Like, I can make people sick … I don' know. Ya gotta see me in action ta get the full effect of my power. _I _added the bit that makes it so people can catch it!" He was obviously gloating and need someone to gloat to. Someone who wouldn't smack him across the face or say, "Oh, Malady. Go get some blood samples for me now."  
  
He continued, more serious. "This disease while wipe out the human race, but not in a bad way. It will give them minor mutant powers, maybe like, instead of telepathy, slightly able to perceive the _tone _of people thoughts - happy, sad, mad, etc. You know, empathy. But breeding." He smiled. " Now _that's _when it gets tricky. If a pregnant woman gets the virus then she will become slightly mutated, but her baby will become _fully _mutant, having grown up with powers in the womb. It will have powers virtually _it's whole life_! If someone's not pregnant and gets it, then if they have a kid in the future, that kid will adapt powers normally: at puberty.  
  
"Now let's say that person is incapable of reproducing. Then this disease will be sexually transmitted. You know you have the disease if a norm gets sick for anywhere from three hours to three _days_. After that, they are more than healthy. But if it comes across an impotent priest or barren nun, well, then, you know, it's stuck right there. They'll still get slight powers, though." He was smiling more than ever now. "This is gonna be _ huge_!"  
  
"My _God_! Have you even _tested_ this?!"  
  
Malady shrugged. "On lab rats. A dollar fifty a dozen if ya get 'em cheap downtown."  
  
"What if it _kills _people?! And the _rats_?! They can't _fly _now, can they? Oh, God, can one of them fire energy blasts?"  
  
"No, of course not. We put 'em all under after a few tests. I didn't think you'd be so sensitive about this. I'm sorry." He looked genuinely hurt. "But this is for the good of ERA, humans, mutants, the country … Hell, even the _world_! You have to understand how important this is to us, to _all _of us. We could go down in history. If Crimson allows us to be known, that is. You have no idea what ERA has just done for you, your children, and your children's children. This is gonna be huge."  
  
He sighed. "We'll put it in a bomb, carefully constructed so as not to hurt the disease. Just to, like, blow it all over the place. Infect people though. Just people. Mutants, I assume, will either be immune or will gain slightly more powers. I gotta go now. But this is gonna be huge. You just wait and see. We've all made sacrifices for this project. You, me, all of us. Leaving our homes, for one. Leaving school, friends, family, Crimson lost a digit. You lost your blood. This is gonna be huge. I gotta go now. Just think about it. You're really important to this mission. You're blood is what allows humans to catch it. Remember that, will ya? Oh, yeah. And another warning, 'cause I'm sure you heard plenty of 'em. Follow the rules and don't do anything that will upset Crimson. She can get rid of you like that - " He snapped his fingers.  
  
He hesitated there for a moment longer. "Well … " he began, but apparently that was all he had. He obviously didn't want to leave just yet. "I, um … " Finally he hit upon something: "Be careful out there. I really don't want to see you getting hurt. Well, I'll be seein' ya. Bye."  
  
Adrenaline stared after him and watched him leave. "Bye," she added to his back.  
  
* * *  
  
"So, how'd you like your first week?"  
  
"It sucked."  
  
"Gee, well, it's nice to know you're _honest_," Naiad retorted sarcastically. "Here. Eat this."  
  
They were in the kitchen. Audacity had just dropped off a recipe and some food. Naiad, the cook of the girl's quarters was busily preparing a "carb-loaded dinner" as Ultra had put it.  
  
"What is it?" Andrea said as she spooned a clump of white, brown, and gray paste into her mouth. She tasted some ham and rice and … something unknown, but sour and bitter.  
  
"I have no idea, but it'll give you a burst of energy for exercising. Runners in Kenya eat a heavy carb diet and they're really athletic. It should work for us to."  
  
"Do you have any Pop Tarts?"  
  
"No. Eat the paste."  
  
"Haven't heard anyone say that since kindergarten," Andrea muttered sarcastically over her bowl. "Hey. What's you're real name?"  
  
"I can't say. You might slip up and call me it in a fight. Then we'd have to … Let's just say only a few people have slipped up before."  
  
Andrea was quiet, contemplating what she had just heard. She remembered what Malady had said that day. "I've heard worse … " "You have to stick with it the rest of your life."  
  
"But it's Claire, Claire Jennsen. What's your name?"  
  
"Andrea Shane. What's Ultra's?"  
  
"You'll have to ask her It's not my place to say. It's too risky. You know, the fights and all. I'll explain later. She's always liked to follow the rules Crimson set out for her, no matter how weird those rules may be. Her life before ERA, in a nutshell, was pretty sucky. Her mom was always on drugs and that really got to Ultra. This is probably the closest thing she's ever gotten to a real family."  
  
There was a crash from the living room.  
  
"What the-" Naiad's eyes widened as Ultra stormed in, carrying a camera and a notebook and pen.  
  
"What the hell is this?!" she exclaimed.  
  
"Adrenaline! You didn't!"  
  
"What? What'd I do?!"  
  
Ultra strode over to a walk-in closet at the end of the kitchen and threw the camera into it and slammed the door. "What do you think you're doing with these?! Did you take any pictures?!"  
  
"No!" Andrea screamed. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" She jumped up.  
  
"Adrenaline, you can _never _take any pictures or bring any attention to our little organization, understand?"  
  
"What is this?! Fight Club?!"  
  
"Fight Club was a group of brain-washed terrorists. We are the _ anti_-terrorists. They want to cause terror. We don't. Terrorists want to be known. We can't! If we get found out, we'll all get thrown in prison! Do you think we'll get off _easy _'cause we're kids?! Think again. We're _mutants_. That's all we are to them. They'll find any thing they can to lock us up for good. And Crimson. She's got it worse. They'll charge her with everything in the book, anything from jaywalking to statutory rape to murder. Whatever they can get their filthy, grimy norm hands on, true or not.  
  
"I'm sorry, Adrenaline, but that's the reason you can't take _any _pictures of _anything _if they - anyone - finds out the approximate location of us, we'll have to just pack up and leave. It's not fair, I know, but even if you _mention _us in your little book, then we may have to dispose of you. I don't know how, just get rid of you and your little book. That's why no one can know our names. It's the strictest rule here. So far, very few people have broken it, but those who have - "  
  
" - they had to leave," Ultra cut in. "So, ya see this camera? Now ya don't." With that, Ultra opened up the window next to the kitchen table and, within moments, she had set the camera afire and it was hurtling toward the streets. "Look out below!" she called innocently enough.  
  
"I can't believe you just did that," Andrea said darkly, quietly, putting slight emphasis on the words "believe" and "just". Rage was slowly building up inside of her, but it was suppressed by shock at what had just happened, both with her camera and the speech that Naiad had just made.  
  
"Well, believe it, 'cause if it ever happens again, I'm turnin' you in to Crimson." With that, Ultra stormed off into the living room and plopped herself onto the couch and pouted.  
  
"Whoa. That was weird," Andrea said softly.  
  
"Adrenaline, you _do _know that this can't happen again right?" Naiad was very grim and her blue eyes were widened with nervousness and shock.  
  
"Geez! I'm sorry!"  
  
"I'm going to have to read your notebook whenever you write something. I'm sure you'll agree. It's either that, or I turn you into Crimson. I'm sorry. I'm already bending the rules enough. I'm on the verge of breaking them so please agree."  
  
"I … What if I use code words?"  
  
"No, nothing. Anything can be deciphered."  
  
Andrea sighed. "This sucks, ya know that?"  
  
"You shoulda seen the hell I put up with when I tried to bringmy diary," Naiad smiled. "I ended up ditching it all together three years ago. When my dad … He kind of … Let's just say I haven't seen him for a while … I guess he just … got tired of us or something … He sent us - me and Mal - here to ERA. Ya see, we're not really twins, we're half-twins. Dad slept around and one day, two of his 'girlfriends' got pregnant, had kids the exact same day, one in Australia and one in Wyoming. Malady stayed in Sydney, I stayed in Wyoming. Before ERA, we only saw each other once before. But our parents had us keep in contact. I found out I had a brother when I was seven.  
  
"Dad sent us here. I only met him twice. The second time … well, the rest is history … " She trailed off but Andrea didn't pressure her to continue. There was a hurt look in her eyes that she was trying to cover up. When she began again, her voice was softer and higher pitched. "When Me and Mal first came. We were the first. Then there was Audacity. Then some others came. But … they didn't last long. After awhile, Ultra and Echo came. And there were a few others before you, but they also had to leave. I doubt they'll say anything, though. They know better than that. They were pretty loyal. But you. I hope you last longer. I kinda like you. You seem nice. I'd hate for something bad to happen to you. We all have high hopes for you. But then again … we had high hopes for _them_, too. Let's just say you're in harm's way. You know that, don't you?"  
  
'The others? In harm's way?' Andrea nodded, too afraid to ask any questions. 'I gotta ask. I gotta know.' "Exactly _what _happened to 'the others'? What are you talking about?"  
  
"If … if you mess up, like if you make a slip up and call me 'Claire', then we'll … we'll … it's never happened to me, I just know I never see them again and Crimson sends them their stuff. Wherever they went. I … I feel really bad for them, but I know they feel worse." Naiad's voice was getting softer and softer. Maybe with guilt, or maybe with sorrow and loss. Finally, it was as if she were talking to herself. She looked down at the tabletop and murmured, "I hope they make it home okay."  
  
"You're really creeping me out, Claire!" Adrenaline jumped up. As soon as she realized her error, her eyebrows shot up.  
  
"Don't worry. It doesn't count as long as no one else hears. If you ever make a slip up, make sure there is no one else present. I'm going to bed now. Think things through. Everything. I'm sure you don't want to make a slip up." And with that, Naiad left. There was a rustling as Naiad scurried under the blankets.  
  
Adrenaline heard Ultra sigh, drag a blanket across the floor, and find a comfortable place in the corner. She stared out the window. Night was falling and soon there was darkness. She longed to turn on a light but knew that there was not enough money to pay the electrical bill. She sighed as well and propped her chin up on her fists. Staring out the window, she watched the lights blink on around her, almost a perfect mimic of day. 'New York City. My new life.'  
  
"Hey, Adrenaline?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Remember to close the window when you go to bed. We don't want any weirdoes getting in."  
  
"We're on the fifth story! Who can get in?" After she said that, she could feel Naiad's piercing blue gaze drill through her skull.  
  
"Mutants can be criminals, too, ya know. In case you've forgotten."  
  
Adrenaline looked from Naiad's silhouette to the black blob that was Ultra and then quickly observed her surroundings. "No," she concluded. "I haven't."  
  
"G'night."  
  
"Night." She closed and latched the window and headed for the living room. Curling up under a blanket with the stuffing unequally placed all through the it, she lay, looking up at the blank ceiling.  
  
She reflected on Naiad's words. She was slightly disturbed by them. ' … In harm's way … ' She liked that. She couldn't have asked for a better ending.  



End file.
